Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu: No Intent to Occupy Gaza, Emphasizes Eradication of Hamas
Shafaq News/ Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu stated that Israel is not aiming to occupy or govern the Gaza Strip but emphasized the intention to eradicate Hamas.
In an interview with Fox News, Netanyahu outlined his vision for Gaza's future, emphasizing the necessity of eliminating Hamas for the benefit of all parties involved.
"We don't seek to conquer Gaza, we don't seek to occupy Gaza, and we don't seek to govern Gaza," Netanyahu said in a Fox News interview that aired Thursday.
"We'll have to find a government, a civilian government that will be there, but in the foreseeable future, we have to make sure that this doesn't happen again," Netanyahu continued.
"I think Israel will, for an indefinite period, will have the overall security responsibility because we've seen what happens when we don't have it," Netanyahu said in an interview with ABC News on Monday. "When we don't have that security responsibility, what we have is the eruption of Hamas terror on a scale that we couldn't imagine."
He insisted on the demilitarization of Gaza, ridding the region of extremists and focusing on reconstruction efforts. Netanyahu emphasized that Israel does not seek to invade, occupy, or rule Gaza but stressed the importance of preventing similar incidents in the future, mainly referring to the Hamas attack on Israel on October 7.
As of now, the casualties in the Gaza Strip since the commencement of the Israeli military operation have exceeded 10,800 people, with approximately 27,000 reported injuries, according to the Ministry of Health in Gaza.
